NFL Week 4 Picks

Falcons over 49ers - 24-13
Jets over Bills - 27-9
Bengals over Browns - 24-10
Packers over Lions - 31-13
Titans over Broncos - 28-13
Seahawks over Rams - 17-13
Steelers over Ravens - 17-10
Saints over Panthers - 31-10
Texans over Raiders - 24-13
Colts over Jags - 34-21
Eagles over Redskins - 24-21
Chargers over Cardinals - 24-17
Bears over NY Giants - 24-20
Patriots over Dolphins - 21-17

NFL Week 3 Recap

Congratulations to me on my first Fantasy Football win of the season. I'd like to take this opportunity thank a couple of people. First, I'd like to extend my highest praise to Joe Flacco for targeting my WR Anquan Boldin 11 times, and I'd like to thank Boldin for catching 8 of those passes for 142 yards and 3 TD's, that raked me in 32 fantasy points. Second, I'd like to thank Phillip Rivers for having a big statistical game against the Seahawks, he put up 28 points. Last, but definitely not least, Santana Moss was the difference maker for me this week. I decided to sit the struggling Mike Sims-Walker in favor of Moss, and it paid off, to the tune of 16 fantasy points. I beat a dear friend of mine this week, Pat Rammer, by a score of 115-107, but we all know friendships are thrown out the window when it comes to fantasy football.

Last week I went 11-5 with my picks, this week was much less successful. I went 9-7 in week 3 thanks to S.F. laying an egg, and New Orleans kicker Garrett Hartley bricking a field goal, again. You'll hear about Hartley later in this post. So my two week running total of picks is now at 20-12, not bad.

Fantasy Adjustments for week 4: I have only one guy on bye week, TE Jason Witten, so I added Oakland TE Zach Miller from waivers. I know the Raiders don't have a great offense, but I think Miller will have a decent game against the lackluster Houston defense. Other than that, I think I'm gonna leave everything the same. I'm tempted to start Shonn Greene against Buffalo because the matchup is so enticing, but, I don't feel like he will get enough touches to warrant a start over Portis or Jones-Drew. Let's now move on to the best and worst from week 3.

NFL Week 3 Picks

Tennessee over NY Giants: 24-17
Pittsburgh over Tampa Bay: 13-6
Cincinnati over Carolina: 27-10
Baltimore over Cleveland: 21-6
Houston over Dallas: 31-24
S.F. over Kansas City: 17-14
Minnesota over Detroit: 24-13
New England over Buffalo: 31-9
New Orleans over Atlanta: 27-20
Washington over St. Louis: 24-10
Philadelphia over Jacksonville: 27-17
Arizona over Oakland: 13-10
San Diego over Seattle: 28-17
Indy over Denver: 24-20
Miami over NY Jets: 20-17
Green Bay over Chicago: 24-17

Upset of the week: Miami over NY Jets
The Jets will be without Darrelle Revis on Sunday in Miami, which puts a lot more pressure on rookie DB Kyle Wilson to try and contain Dolphins WR Brandon Marshall. I think Marshall has a huge game, very reminiscent of his days with Jay Cutler in Denver. Miami's defense will also give the Jets a lot of trouble, we saw their full potential last week in Minnesota, and I see them playing just as well at home this Sunday.

NFL Week 2 Recap

So I did half-way decent on my week 2 picks. The Vikings, Patriots and Titans killed me, but I ended up with a week 2 record of 11-5. My fantasy team lost for the second straight week, Maurice Jones-Drew seems to have forgotten how much success he had last season, or maybe he just forgot how to run. Jones-Drew ran the ball only 12 times for 31 yards, not the kind of production one would expect from a top 3 fantasy back. Shonn Greene was again a huge disappointment in week 2. Greene was a preseason top 5 fantasy back, rated in the top 10 by every single one of the fantasy "experts" that you can find. The LT resurgence in NY has cut into a lot of carries for Greene, and his lack of production shows that maybe he just isn't that good. Greene carried the ball 15 times for a lackluster 52 yards. I need production out of my two big time running backs to climb out of the fantasy hole they have dug for me. Let me give you a breakdown of my fantasy starters, and some bench guys that may end up contributing:
QB: Phillip Rivers, Chargers
RB1: Maurice Jones-Drew, Jags
RB2: Shonn Greene, Jets/Clinton Portis, Redskins
RB/WR: Santana Moss, Redskins/Mike Sims-Walker, Jags
WR: Andre Johnson, Texans
WR: Anquan Boldin, Ravens
TE: Jason Witten, Cowboys
D/ST: Packers
K: Rob Bironas, Titans
On paper, I think this is a really good team, but until guys start producing the numbers that they are capable of, I'm gonna lose.

Best and Worst from week 2:
Best-
5. Matt Schaub and Michael Vick - Schaub had a huge game in Texans 30-27 overtime win over the Redskins. He threw for 497 yards and connected on 3 TD's. Mike Vick had a spectacular start in the Eagles 35-32 win over the Lions. Vick threw for 284 yards and 2 TD's and might have caused head coach Andy Reid to rethink his devotion to having Kevin Kolb as his starter.

4. Randy Moss' one handed catch in the end zone was a thing of beauty. He escaped Revis Island with a ridiculous move off the line to get free, and finished in style. Another thing I liked about this play was Moss acted like a professional, no taunting, no celebrating.

3. The Colts Offense - after a disappointing loss in week 1 to Houston, the elder Manning didn't waste anytime in taking control of the Manning bowl. Before the Giants could blink, Peyton had shredded their defense for 24 points in the first half. Joseph Addai and Donald Brown combined for 161 rushing yards and a TD. Indy won the game 38-14.

2. The Miami Dolphin Defense - they held Brett Favre and the Vikings to only 10 points in their 14-10 victory on Sunday. They pressured Favre into making a lot of bad throws resulting in three interceptions, and a fumble recovery in the end zone for a TD. The Dolphins defense also collected three sacks.

1. Steelers Defense - maybe the Steel Curtain is back. I have doubted the ability of this team to recover from the loss of Ben Roethlisberger to suspension, and after Sunday's dominating defensive performance against Chris Johnson and the Titans, Pittsburgh has gotten my attention. The Steelers held Johnson to just 34 yards on 16 carries, picked off three passes, and had 4 sacks in a 19-11 victory to put them at 2-0 to start the season.

Worst-
5. Vince Young - Young got worked over by the Steelers, and was benched in favor of Kerry Collins. Could this possibly be a repeat of the VY breakdown we saw back in 2007? We will have to wait and see.

4. Brett Favre - not only did he look old in the Vikings loss to the Dolphins on Sunday, but he looked disinterested. Favre threw three picks and had a costly fumble in the end zone that resulted in an easy six for the Dolphins.

3. Chris Johnson - Johnson carried the ball 16 times for just 34 yards against the Steelers. CJ is the offensive catalyst for this Titans squad, and if he's not going, the team doesn't either.

2. Reggie Bush - Bush is on this list not because of his performance, but because of his nasty looking knee injury. The Saints RB was helped off the field with 6:58 left in the game, and has been ruled out of action for at least the next six weeks.

1. The Dallas Cowboys - Most people's preseason favorite to reach the Superbowl lost to the Bears on Sunday 27-20, which puts them at 0-2 to begin the season. The offense looked terrible, the defense looked worse, and there are rumblings from certain members of the team, saying that the players got caught up in their own hype. This looks like a disaster waiting to happen in Dallas.

NFL Week 2 Predictions

Tennessee over Pittsburgh: 21-17
Minnesota over Miami: 31-14
Atlanta over Arizona: 21-14
Baltimore over Cincinnati: 17-10
Kansas City over Cleveland: 14-9
Dallas over Chicago: 27-21
Philadelphia over Detroit: 21-7
Tampa Bay over Carolina: 14-7
Green Bay over Buffalo: 28-6
Denver over Seattle: 17-14
Oakland over St. Louis: 13-10
Houston over Washington: 24-17
New England over NY Jets: 28-21
San Diego over Jacksonville: 24-21
Indy over NY Giants: 31-24
New Orleans over SF: 28-17

This will be a new feature of Five Tool Sports, I will pick each game every week (besides week one) and keep track of my wins and losses. Also, I will give you guys an update of how my fantasy team is doing each and every week, besides week one of course, because Mike Sims Walker and Shonn Greene decided not to show up. So, from here on out, expect this on Sundays!

Skateboard Street League

As I was flipping through the channels on my 56" Samsung flat screen last night, I came upon something that I had heard about a few weeks prior, the Skateboard Street League. I remember hearing it once on Rob Dyrdek's MTV show 'Fantasy Factory' and again through email from a friend. I actually attempted to score some press passes to one of the events, but unfortunately, I never heard back. Although I was still a bit perturbed from being snubbed for press passes, I decided to watch; I mean, it was either that, or my sixth repeat of SportsCenter.

So, I was expecting to hear some random, confused announcer, attempting to use skateboarding terminology, but sounding extremely ignorant. To my surprise, Dyrdek himself, along with friend and fellow pro-skater Steve Berra, were each giving play-by-play and color commentary. It seemed as if they were right at home. Both Dyrdek and Berra were giving great explanations of what was taking place, how the scoring worked, why certain tricks were harder than the others and even giving background on each skater. Having the right people conveying information to the audience shows me that Dyrdek put a lot of deep thought and hard work into the Skateboard Street League.

Again, I was expecting the scoring and overall idea to be a little complicated to follow, but once I caught on (took about 2 minutes) it was very easy to follow, and it made a lot of sense. Let me break everything down for you:

Seven of the best skateboarders on Earth:
Nyjah Huston
Torey Pudwill
Paul Rodriguez
Shane O'neill
Sean Malto
Chaz Ortiz
Chris Cole

Four Sections:
1. Creative
2. Line
3. Technical
4. Big

In each section, every skater gets seven runs. Each run is given a score on a 1-10 scale, 10's are very hard to come by, as the highest score I saw from the competition in Phoenix was a seven. Each score is added together and that is the skaters score for that section. The score's from each section are then added together, and a winner is crowned.

Another thing I liked was the scoring bar located on the bottom of the screen, it allows the viewer to see which skater is up, how many points they are behind first place, and the score that they get for each trick. I've been out if the skateboard game since about 8th grade, when I realized that I wasn't any good, so I actually didn't know a few of these skaters (Sean Malto, Chris Cole, Chaz Ortiz). Leave it to Dyrdek to have the perfect solution to my problem. Throughout the competition, there are athlete profiles, where the skater himself gives you some background on where they came from and how they got to where they are today. It's the perfect way to help get a person on the fence to buy into the Skateboard Street League.

This competition is not just for fun either, there is a lot at stake, $150,000 to be exact. The fact that there are pretty hefty cash prizes for first and second place make this competition REAL. You can watch as the competitors strategize before taking their next run. They know their score, they know what they have to get to take the lead, or they know what kind of trick is needed to keep the lead, it's great to watch.

As Dyrdek stresses throughout the competition, the key is consistency. If you land every trick, you win, plain and simple. But it's not so simple, because skateboarding is difficult. I have the highest respect for anyone who can pull of the kind of insane tricks that these seven skaters were doing throughout the competition, it was absolutely amazing. The Skateboard Street League allows these guys a platform to perform their skill for people who may have never seen it live.

The part about this thing that struck me the most is Rob Dyrdek's sheer brilliance. First of all, the idea of having a Skateboard Street League is pure genius, never done before. Second, to have his other brands being advertised during the commercial breaks, DC and his kids toys the Wild Grinders, he's knocking out three birds with one stone. Lastly, Dyrdek is giving back to his true passion in life, skateboarding.

Dyrdek's success is unmatched in the skateboard world, and maybe even the world of entertainment. From DC to Rob and Big, Fantasy Factory, Wild Grinders, and now the Skateboard Street League, it's like everything Dyrdek touches turns to gold. I was intrigued by the idea, and now I am hooked, I think everyone should take time to sit down and watch this event, it's the future of skateboarding.

Best and Worst from Week 1 in the NFL

It was a very interesting opening week in the NFL, to say the least. A lot of good things happened, Arian Foster, the Houston Texans RB had a coming out party at the expense of the Colts. A lot of bad things happened as well, Bob Sanders, the Colts star DB is out indefinitely with a torn biceps muscle. So with no further delay, here are the five best and worst happenings from week 1 in the NFL.

Best:

5. Redskins beat the Cowboys in a battle of division rivals on Sunday Night Football.
Washington dominated the game on defense, and had a good controlled flow on offense in Donovan McNabb's Redskins debut.

4. Cheifs beat the Chargers in another battle of division rivals on Monday Night Football.
The Cheifs were counted out by almost everyone in their season previews (including myself). Kansas City gutted out an ugly win over the highly favored Chargers, and gave their rabid fans something to look forward to for the rest of the season.

3. Chris Johnson picks up where he left off.
Johnson showed no signs of slowing down in his first game of 2010. He carried the ball 27 times for 142 yards and 2 TD's in a win over the Raiders.

2. Ray Lewis lays out Dustin Keller.
If any of you watched the Ravens/Jets game on Monday night, you know what I'm talking about. If you didn't, youtube it, now.

1. Arian Foster arrives in a big way.
Arian Foster single handedly downed the Colts with his ridiculous performance on Sunday. Foster carried the ball 33 times for 231 yards and scored 3 TD's.

Worst:

5. Chargers lose to Cheifs.
San Diego look abysmal in their Monday Night Football loss to the Chiefs. The Chargers offense desperately missed both LaDanian Tomlinson and Vincent Jackson, and their defense looked anemic.

4. Philadelphia Eagles.
The Eagles traded Donovan McNabb to division rival Washington, and the guy crowned to replace him looks horrendous. Kevin Kolb only attempted 10 passes, connecting on 5 of them for 24 yards before leaving the game due to a concussion. Another terrible judgement call was allowing LB Stewart Bradley to re-enter the game after suffering a very ugly looking head or neck injury which caused him to have trouble getting off the turf, and led to him stumbling and falling back to the ground.

3. 49ers get pummeled by Seahawks.
Maybe all the preseason love given to the Niners went to their head. San Francisco got shellacked by the Seahawks 31-6 on Sunday. Quarterback Alex Smith looked terrible, as did RB Frank Gore. The Niners defense couldn't stop a lackluster Seattle offense led by over the hill QB Matt Hasselbeck.

2. Tony Romo and Tashard Choice to end the first half.
Either take a knee or throw a hail Mary. No, Romo decided to throw a shovel pass to Tashard Choice, and Choice actually thought he could make a play out of it! Well, he got stripped of the ball by DeAngelo Hall and gave the Redskins six points, wonder how much the 'skins paid him for it.

1. Shonn Greene.
The Jets allowed RB Thomas Jones to walk after the most productive season of his career in favor of Greene, and how did he repay them? Five carries for 18 yards and 1 catch for 9 yards, oh yea, he fumbled twice and lost one of them.

NFC East Preview and Predictions

1. Dallas Cowboys - 11-5
I really like the Cowboys offense, but their schedule is extremely difficult. We all know that QB Tony Romo can produce at a very high level, but his problem is performing under pressure. The past few seasons, Romo has choked on the biggest of stages. That being said, numbers don't lie, since becoming a starter in 2006, Romo has thrown for over 4,000 yards twice and 107 total TD's. I look for Romo to have another huge regular season in 2010. The running game in Dallas is definitely a strength, they have a nice combo of backs with Felix Jones and Marion Barber. Barber brings the traditional smash mouth running style, while Jones changes the pace and likes to break to the outside with his quickness. Miles Austin has emerged as a fantastic receiver that Romo loves to target, in 2009, Austin broke onto the scene with 1,320 receiving yards and 11 TD's. His counterpart, Roy Williams, hasn't lived up to the expectations he set for himself in Dallas, in fact, Williams has created nothing but problems since coming over from Detroit. I expect rookie receiver Dez Bryant to fill in where Williams doesn't, and have a nice year. Tight End Jason Witten is one of the best at the position, and every football fan knows he and Tony Romo have a great relationship.
The Cowboys have a really good front three with Igor Olshansky, Jay Ratliff, and Marcus Spears. Ratliff will be the anchor on the D-Line, he had a nice season last year with 6 sacks. Their linebacking core is very talented, and it consists of DeMarcus Ware, Bradie James, Keith Brooking and Anthony Spencer. DeMarcus Ware leads this defense, since coming into the league in 2005, Ware has accumulated 64.5 sacks. Don't sleep on then other three guys, though, because they are all savvy veterans and solid defensive players. The Cowboys secondary is led by CB Terrance Newman, but safeties Gerald Sensabaugh and Alan Ball can cause serious problems for opposing offenses. Third year CB Mike Jenkins had five interceptions last season, I'm looking for him to build on that performance.

2. Washington Redskins - 10-6
Not only have the Redskins bulked up on the field, they bolstered their coaching staff as well. They acquired veteran QB Donovan McNabb from division rival Philadelphia, and they signed veteran WR Joey Galloway to take some of the pressure off of fellow WR Santana Moss. Everyone knows the type of impact that McNabb can have on the field, but the impact off the field could be more important. McNabb brings the stability at the most important offensive position that the 'skins haven't had in quite some time. Maybe the most important signing the Redskins made in the off season was head coach Mike Shanahan. Shanahan is best known from his very successful tenure in Denver, and a lot of people are excited about what he can bring to Washington. Clinton Portis is the starting RB in Washington, and if he can stay healthy, we can all expect big things. If Portis does lose time due to injury, backup RB Larry Johnson will step in and see if he can recapture the success he had with Kansas City. McNabb will have three solid receivers to use at will, Santana Moss is a guy who can beat you both short and deep, Joey Galloway always has very productive seasons, and Chris Cooley is as sure handed as they come.
The front three may be the only question on this Redskins defense. We've all heard about the problems between Shanahan and Albert Haynesworth throughout the preseason, and if they can work through the disagreements, the 'skins defensive unit will be complete. I love the linebacking unit that Washington has put together, London Fletcher, Andre Carter, and Rocky McIntosh are all veterans who can teach rookie LB Brian Orakpo how to be a successful NFL linebacker. I think the biggest strength on this Washington defense is their secondary, LaRon Landry, DeAngelo Hall, Phillip Buchannon, and Carlos Rogers are all experienced veterans who can make big plays when needed.

3. NY Giants - 9-7
Eli Manning is back, and so are his extremely awkward interviews. Manning, since becoming a starter in 2005, has thrown for at least 21 TD's and 3,200 yards in each season, including his first 4,000 yard performance in 2009. Although Manning is a different cast of receivers this year, I don't expect any drop in his performance. The Giants receivers are an interesting cast of characters, someone has to step up to be the number one guy, and all the talk is about Steve Smith. Smith emerged as Eli Manning's favorite target in 2009, he caught 107 passes for 1,220 yards and 7 TD's, all being career highs. Smith may be the decided number one receiver, but WR Hakeem Nicks, a second year guy out of North Carolina, has the size and skill to be a great NFL wideout. Brandon Jacobs will again be the mainstay in the back field for the Giants. Last season, Jacobs production fell dramatically compared to the 2007 and 2008 seasons due in part to injury. As I watched Jacobs throughout the 2009 season, it doesn't look like he is running as hard as he did in the past. I doubt that Jacobs will have another 1,000 yard season in 2010. Look for Ahmad Bradshaw to have a much more productive season than Jacobs.
When healthy, the Giants defense is one of the best in the league. The front four of Justin Tuck, Barry Cofield, Chris Canty and Osi Umenyiora are very versatile and can cause huge problems to any offensive line. The linebacking group is young, Michael Boley is the only starter who has more than five years under his belt at the NFL level. The Giants signed veteran linebacker Keith Bulluck in the off season, look for him to steal some time from the youngsters. I really like the Giants secondary, CB's Corey Webster and Terrell Thomas combined for six interceptions in 2009. The Giants signed made a huge upgrade to their secondary by signing safety Antrel Rolle in the off season, look for Rolle to have a huge 2010 season.

4. Philadelphia Eagles - 6-10
The Eagles traded former franchise QB Donovan McNabb to division rival Washington, thus ushering in the Kevin Kolb era. The people in Philadelphia must know something about Kolb that we don't. I've watched Kolb throughout the preseason, but I have seen nothing to justify shipping out McNabb in favor of him. It should be very interesting watching how Kolb develops throughout the season. If I were Andy Reid, I'd take a long look at making Michael Vick the starting QB. The running back position is another question mark on the Eagles offense, second year guy LeSean McCoy will take the reign from Brian Westbrook who departed for San Francisco. In 2009, McCoy rushed the ball 155 times, for 637 yards and 4 TD's. I like the Eagles receivers, DeSean Jackson, Jeremy Maclin and Brent Celek should all help make Kolb's transition to starting NFL QB much easier.
The Eagles defense is not as feared as it has been in the past. Trent Cole will lead the front four, while rookie Brandon Graham is looking to make a huge impact in his first NFL season. LInebacker Stewart Bradley will lead this unit, he had a big year in 2009 with 108 tackles, 1 sack and 1 interception. The secondary is the bright spot of this defense, Asante Samuels, Ellis Hobbs, Quintin Mikell and Nate Allen are all very experienced, and very good defensive players. This may be sort of a " rebuilding" year for the Eagles.

NFC North Preview and Predictions

1. Green Bay Packers - 12-4
I really like the Packers team as a whole this year, and we'll start with the offense. Aaron Rodgers has grown and developed into one of the best QB's in the league. In 2009 he set career highs in passing yards (4,434), completions (350), and TD's (30). Rodgers also has some decent legs on him, he had five rushing touchdowns in 2009. Green Bay has kept all the weapons that Rodgers used to have such a productive 2009 campaign, I only see him getting better. Running Back Ryan Grant is coming into his third full season as the starter, and in each of the past two seasons, Grant has broken the 1,000 yard mark on the ground. Last season he set career highs with 1,253 rushing yards and 11 TD's. With another year of experience under his belt, I expect more production out of Grant in 2010. The Packers receivers are a mix of old reliable (Donald Driver), the young dynamic guy (Greg Jennings), and the quick slot receiver (Jordy Nelson). Jennings has emerged as not only the Packers number one option, but he's also a top 5 receiver in the NFL. Jennings has had back to back seasons with over 1,000 yards receiving.
Green Bay lost Aaron Kampman in the off season, but their defense still has the chance to be extremely dangerous. The Defensive Line Is led by Cullen Jenkins, but look for second year Nose Tackle B.J. Raji to have a huge year in his first as a starter. The core of Linebackers is the biggest strength of this defensive unit. A.J. Hawk, Clay Matthews, Nick Barnett and Brad Jones form one of the most feared LB units in the NFL. In 2009, Matthews has 10 sacks on his own (a Packers rookie record) and the LB unit as a whole had 19 sacks. Green Bay's secondary is led by six time Pro-Bowl CB Charles Woodson. In 2009, Woodson had 9 interceptions and 2 sacks, and was nearly matched by FS Nick Collins who had 6 interceptions and 1 sack.

2. Minnesota Vikings - 11-5
Favre is back, but Sidney Rice is out. Favre's favorite target from a year ago is out indefinitely after having hip surgery. Favre will be Favre, there is no need to go through stats, because we already know how good Brett can be. Running Back Adrian Peterson also needs no introduction, he alongside RB Chris Johnson, are fighting for the title of best back in the league. Second year receiver Percy Harvin and deep threat Bernard Berrian are gonna have to step up in Rice's absence, but the migranes Harvin battled all through training camp have to be a cause for concern in Minnesota. Favre always seems to have a good relationship with his Tight End's, so look for him to be targeting TE Visanthe Shiancoe a lot more often.
The Vikings also have a very good defense. The front four of Jared Allen, Ray Edwards, and Pat and Kevin Williams has to be considered one of the best in the NFL. The Linebackers are also solid, Chad Greenway, Ben Leber and E.J. Henderson can all produce at high levels. The secondary is lead by veteran CB Antoine Winfield, but second year CB out of Georgia Asher Allen is primed for a great season in 2010.

Chicago Bears - 6-10
Quarterback Jay Cutler struggled in his first season with the Bears, but Cutler can stil throw the ball with the best of 'em. Cutler has one of the biggest arms in the NFL and I look for him to have a better season in 2010. Unfortunately for Cutler, the Bears haven't put together a dangerous core of receivers. Both of his top pass catchers, Devin Hester and Johnny Knox, are Kick Returners turned into Wide Receivers, which doesn't really make sense to me. I am very surprised the Bears didn't make a deal for WR Brandon Marshall, given all the success he and Cutler had during their time in Denver. Running Back Matt Forte is an all-purpose back, he can run the ball like a traditional one, but he is also a very good receiver out of the back field. Forte had a down year in 2009, but I expect good things out of him in 2010. Also, look for WR Devin Aromashodu to emerge as Cutler's favorite target.
On paper, the Bears defense looks just plain scary. Tommie Harris and Julius Peppers are leading the front front four, and those two guys combined in 2009 had 13 sacks. The Linebackers are led by Chicago Linebacking staple Brian Urlacher, whose season was cut short in 2009 due to injury. Urlacher, along with Pisa Tinoisamoa and Lance Briggs create a very formidable group of LB's that should have great success in 2010. The secondary is a combo of really good players. Third year CB Zachary Bowman had six interceptions in 2009, and veterans Danieal Manning and Charles Tillman are always very dangerous.

4. Detroit Lions - 2-14
Quarterback Matthew Stafford is coming into his second year in the NFL, and this one won't get any better than the first one. Stafford had a pretty decent year in 2009, considering the lack of talent the Lions front office put around him. In ten games, Stafford threw for 2,267 yards, 13 TD's and 20 interceptions. I think Stafford himself will have a better year, but the Lions schedule is very difficult and it will be tough to come across wins. Detroit used a first round pick on RB out of Cal Jahvid Best, and by the looks of it, Best will be the starting back in week one. It is very important for a QB to feel comfortable with his RB, and hopefully Stafford can feel comfortable with a rookie in his back field. The Lions receivers are actually pretty good, fourth year man Calvin Johnson has proven to be a legit number one receiver, and Nate Burleson is a nice compliment on the other side.
The guy to watch on defense will be rookie DT Ndamukong Suh. The Lions used the second overall pick in 2010 on Suh and are expecting a lot of good things. Veteran DE Kyle Vanden Bosch enters his first season with the Lions and Detroit will be counting on him to be a defensive leader. Linebacker Julian Peterson will anchor the linebacking unit, he brings a lot of experience and stability. The secondary is a cause for concern, CB's Chris Houston and Johnathon Wade are both entering 2010 as first time starters. Safety C.C. Brown has some experience, but hasn't been a starter in two years, and second year Safety Louis Delmas has unlimited talent and athleticism, but he does tend to make a lot of questionable decisions.

NFC South Preview and Predictions

1. New Orleans Sants - 13-3
The Super Bowl XLIV champs return their basically their entire offense in 2010. Drew Brees is one of the best QB's in the league, if not the best. Last season, Brees threw for nearly 4,400 yards and connected on 34 TD's, I don't doubt that Brees can best that performance in 2009. Running Back Pierre Thomas provides the tough, hit you in the mouth running style, while RB Reggie Bush brings dynamic play making ability both in the running and passing game. The Saints have four solid Wide Receivers in Marques Colston, Devery Henderson, Robert Meachem and Lance Moore. All four of those guys have the ability to produce at very high levels. Tight End Jeremey Shockey also gives Brees a huge target when all else fails. Drew Brees has unlimited options on offense, and they will be one of the top 3 offenses in the NFL.
The defense took a tough hit when Free Safety Darren Sharper was place on the Physically Unable to Perform list, which will cause him to miss the first six weeks of the 2010 season. The Saints do have a very good defense, despite the loss of Sharper. Linebackers Johnathon Vilma and Scott Shanle combined for 5 interceptions in 2009, they also signed veteran LB Danny Clark in the off season. New Orleans' secondary will be able to hold their own while Sharper is out, CB's Randall Gay and Jabari Greer both have the ability to be lockdown defenders, and fifth year safety Roman Harper has broke onto the scene as one of the best in the league. Defensive End Will Smith had 13 sacks last season, so look for him to have another huge year in 2010.

2. Atlanta Falcons - 10-6
The Falcons have three very good pieces to make their offense a very productive one. Quarterback Matt Ryan has developed into a solid NFL player, in 14 games last season, Ryan threw for 2,916 yards and connected on 22 TD's. I expect Ryan's numbers to be much better this season, as RB Michael Turner and WR Roddy White are healthy coming into 2010. Michael Turner is one of the most explosive backs in the NFL. His 2009 season was dampened with injuries, so I fully expect him to return to 2008 form when he rushed for 1,700 yards and 17 TD's. Like Turner, WR Roddy White battled injuries all through 2010. Despite all the nagging injuries, White started all 16 games and put up good numbers, 1,153 receiving yards and 11 TD's. I expect White to have many more receiving yards this season and about the same amount of TD's. Look for Ryan to take comfort in having TE Tony Gonzalez as someone he knows he can count on to get first downs.
For all the good players on offense, the Falcons defense cannot be talked about in the same light. John Abraham will lead the Defensive Line, and LB Curtis Lofton will try and teach rookie LB Sean Weatherspoon how to be an effective NFL defender. Atlanta gave a big free agent contract to CB Dunta Robinson in the off season, they're hoping he can provide another defensive stopper on the opposite side of Brent Grimes who had 6 interceptions in 2009.

3. Carolina Panthers - 5-11
The Panthers have good pieces on offense, but QB Matt Moore is gonna have to lead this team, and I don't know if he can. Moore is coming into his first year as a full time starter, and the Panthers haven't shown the utmost confidence in him; they used two 2010 draft picks on young QB's Jimmy Clausen and Tony Pike. Wide Receiver Steve Smith is coming into 2010 healthy and is looking to have another season like the one he had in 2005 in which he had 1,563 receiving yards and 12 TD's. The Panthers have one of the best back field's in the NFL with the combination of DeAngelo Williams and Johnathon Stewart. Williams and Stewart combined for 2,250 rushing yards and 17 TD's in 2009.
The Panthers lost DE Julius Peppers in the off season, and it will be difficult to replace him. Defensive End's Tyler Brayton and Charles Johnson will help make the loss of Peppers sting a little less. Linebacker Jon Beason will be the only guy who was a full time starter at the position in 2009. Cornerbacks Chris Gamble and Richard Marshall are both very good players and combined for 8 interceptions last season. Safeties Sherrod Martin and Charles Godfrey are young, energetic players who definitely have playmaking ability.

4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers - 3-13
The Bucs easily have the best team website I have come across through this process, but they don't have a good team, and that is what matters. Second year QB Josh Freeman will be the starter, and I don't have much confidence in him, especially with the lack of weapons around him. Running Back Carnell "Cadillac" Willams has been broken down like the three Caddies my next door neighbor has rotting in her backyard. The number one Wide Receiver listed on the depth chart is rookie Mike Williams out of Syracuse, the Bucs are hoping he doesn't turn out like Pete Carroll's first reunion piece in Seattle. Tight End Kellen Winslow is an accident waiting to happen.
Tampa Bay's defense used to strike fear in the heart's of opponents, but not so much anymore. Some of the players from those great defensive teams still remain, Ronde Barber and Barrett Ruud, but defensive leader Derrick Brooks opted to retire. The Bucs used a first round pick on Defensive Tackle Gerald McCoy out of Oklahoma, so look for him to get a lot of run. The Bucs secondary is quite dangerous with Aqib Talib, Ronde Barber and Tanard Jackson patrolling the area. Defense is not the problem in Tampa, the offense is.